Fr Martin Delaney
The recent death of one of my parishioners got me thinking about how the smallest acts and gestures can have an enormous impact. I was reminded of when Communist rule fell in the former Soviet Union. In August 1991 a group of Russian generals were determined to turn back the tide of democracy in that declining empire. A tank rumbled into Moscow’s Red Square with the sole purpose of capturing democracy leader Boris Yeltsin. Instead of acquiescing to his captors, Yeltsin leaped atop the tank and welcomed the tank commander over to the side of democracy.Later the tank commander reported that, up to this point, he had no intention of joining the forces of democracy, but Yeltsin was so persuasive that he could not resist. And with that single event, communism lost its final prospect of a return to power.A reporter later asked Yeltsin what gave him the courage to take that stand. Yeltsin credited reading the story of Lech Walesa, the Gdansk electrician who led the forces of Solidarity and helped bring democracy to Poland several years before.Someone once asked Walesa what caused him to make the stand that brought down communism in his land. Walesa said he was inspired to by reading accounts of the late Martin Luther King and the civil rights marchers in the United States.
Pivotal events
When Dr King was asked what pivotal event spurred him into action as a leader of his people, he cited the influence of Rosa Parks, the African-American lady in Montgomery, Alabama, who refused to sit in the back of the bus when instructed to do so because of her skin color. Is it possible that the fall of Communism began with one African-American woman who refused to sitin the back of a bus?Back to our parishioner, Jimmy who died at the age of 90. Jimmy could easily have become a contemplative monk but his life took a different direction. A farmer by profession, he married Alice, the love of his life, and together they had eight children. Jimmy managed to seamlessly intertwine his responsibilities as a farmer, a husband and father with a deep spirituality rooted in love for Jesus Christ and His Mother Mary. An important aspect of Jimmy’s vocation was that he would share his love of God and Mary with others and he believed that very small gestures and initiatives could make a powerful difference.On three occasions during the 1990’s, Jimmy and Alice, both in their 60s, traveled to Russia as part of The Mustard Seed Mission. This was in the immediate aftermath of the aforementioned fall of communism. They prayed the rosary on crowded trains, gave out rosaries and miraculous medals to people they met on the streets. They inserted medals in the crevices of a beautiful church which years earlier had been confiscated by the Communists and turned into a concert hall. Sometime after this act of holy sabotage the building was returned to the church as a place of worship. Of course not everyone in Russia welcomed Alice and Jimmy and their friends with open arms. At least on one occasion they were arrested and spent a night sleeping at the KGB Headquarters! Jimmy even learned some Russian language so that he could communicate and pray with those he met. Yes, the smallest mustard seed gestures can have enormous impact. Lent is a great time to sow these little seeds!
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Gift ideas!
For their 20th wedding anniversary Paddy bought his wife a family plot in the local cemetery. As their 21st anniversary
approached the wife asked Paddy, “what are you planning to give me this year for our anniversary?” “Nothing,” replied Paddy, “you still didn’t
use what I gave you last year!”
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Littl e things matter…
“For the want of a nail the shoe was lost,
For the want of a shoe the horse was lost,
For the want of a horse the rider was lost,
For the want of a rider the battle was lost,
For the want of a battle the kingdom was lost,
And all for the want of a horseshoe-nail.”
— Benjamin Franklin: Poor Richard’s Almanac